Metal hoop



Oct. 14, 1930.

A. M. WALSTR OM METAL HOOP Filed Feb. 4, 1928 Patented Oct. 14, 1930 UNITED 'ST ATES AxEL M. WALS'IROM, or MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA METAL HOOP Application filed February 4, 1928. I Serial No. 251,914.

Wooden tubs and pails are now generally used for transporting and storing butter and similar products. These tubs are usually provided with galvanized fiat steel hoops,

' and as these hoops are made of a very light gauge of material it is customary to form a bead on one edge of the hoop to provide a driving shoulder thereon to be engaged by the tool whereby the hoops are forced into position on the tubs.

This beading of one edge of the hoop practically doubles the strength of this edge but does not add to the strength of the other edge which often ruptures while it is being forced onto the tapered tub, or, by the swelling of the tub when filled with a moist product.

It'is therefore an object of my invention to provide a hoop of'the above mentioned material which is less likely to break in identical usage.

My invention consists of a flat steel hoop which has a centrally located circumferential corrugation provided with a flat driving shoulder extending at right angle to the face of said hoop and My invention consists further in providing diametrically opposed projections on the uppermost hoop to serve as finger-grips to facilitate the handling of said tubs.

In the drawing, which forms a part of the following description:

Fig. 1 is a side view of a butter tub showing my improved hoops applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a plan section taken on line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 shows a portion of Fig. 2, enlarged and partly broken away to illustrate the manner of forming the projecting finger-grips; I Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 3, and V Fig. 5 is a similar view taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 1;

, Fig. 6 is a full size view of a portion of my improved hoop, showing one of the fingergrips provided thereon.

In the above entitled views, numeral 7 indicates a tub which is made up of a number of snug-fitting wooden staves held together by the hoops 8. The diameter of this tub is gradually increased from the bottom to the top in order that the staves may be squeezed together to make their joints tight. when the hoops 8 are forced into place thereon.

. For the purpose of stifiening the hoops 8 and for the purpose of providing a circumferential shoulder thereon tobe engaged by thetool which is used toforce said hoop into place on the tub, I provide an outwardly pro ecting circumferential corrugation 9 at the middle of said hoop, and this corrugation has a flattened under side 10 which extends at an approximate right angle with respect to the face of said hoop. The upper, or opposite side 11, of said corrugation is sloped from the point 9 of said corrugation upwardly and inwardly at an acute angle to the-face of said hoop. The. upper portion 8 of the hoop 8 is flared to fit the tapered wall of the tub 7 and its upper edge 8 is turned out slightly to keep this edge from cutting into the staves while it is being forced .into place on said tub. The lower portion 8 is also preferably formed to fit the wall of the tub 7, and its, lower edge 8 isturned in slightly to grip the tub and prevent retrograde movement of the hoop thereon. 7

In forming the hoop now in common use and which is headed at its lower edge, cone siderable difiiculty has been experienced. in flaring the entire width of this very thin hoop to fit the tapered wall of the tub, as the flared un-beaded upper edge of the hoop is considerably weakened by the consequent stretching thereof during the flaring operation. On this account, these hoops are not flared sufficiently to fit the tub and therefore an'excessive stress is produced in this Weak upper edgewhile the hoop is being forced into place on the tapered tub.

By forming the driving shoulder and cor rugation at the middle part of the hoop as described, the comparatively narrow portions 8 and 8 are easily flared to fit the tub without appreciably weakening the upper edge 8, and the central location of the corrugation 9 tends to reinforce the major part of the hoop and equalizes the stress thruout the entire width thereof.

The tubs, when filled with butter or a similar product, are repeatedly handled in transport, storage and delivery thereof, and as there are no projecting parts to grasp on the tubs as now used, it is necessary to tilt them 'suficiently to get one hand under the tub to grasp the lower edge thereof. This procedure hampers the efficiei'it'lji'an dling of the tubs andaddsto thephysical.

exertion of the operatives. Therefore, in order to facilitate the lifting and handling of the tubs, I provide a number of projecting finger-grips 12 on the uppermost hoop 8 These grips are provided in pairs on opposite sides of the tub andmay be oneor morepjairsas desired. The finger-grips 12 are formed by projecting a portion of the middle part of'the'hoop outwardly to a point whe refrom the upper half portion 13 and the lower half portion 14 will befolded inwardly to apractically horizontal position with the'edges 8 and 8 in contact with the tub, as shown in Fig. 4. These 'pro'-.

jected portions'extend around the periphery of the tub for a distance suflicient to accommodate the fingers of one hand, and, asthe c upper hoop 8 is placed at a suitable distance below the top of the tub, these projected portions 12 of the hoop formconveni'ent fingergrips whereby the tub maybeeasily lifted and carried. I V I a r From the above description it will be apparent that I have invented a hoop of improved construction which embodies the fea-" tures p'ointed'out in the following claims.

I claim:

"1'. A metal hoop provided with integral handles formed at diametrically opposite points thereof by forcing middleportions of said hoop outwardly, saidhandles comprising upper and lower flat-surfacedportions extending at an approximate right angle to the surface of the hoop and of sufficient width and length to coinfort ably -accom'mo'date several fingers. U 2. A'metal hoop provided with integral handles formed at diametrically opposite points thereof by forcing middle portions of said hoop outwardly, said handles comprising upper-and lower portions-extending at a an approximate right angleto the surface of said hoop and of sufiicient idthand length to comfortably accommodate several fingers, and the spaced inner edges of said upper and lower portions forming a continuation of the inside diameter of said hoop.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 1st day of February, 1928. I

AXEL M. WALSTROM; 

